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Redmond reunited with his former skippers

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LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -- When rookie manager Mike Redmond looked across the field at Champion Stadium during Monday's 7-6 loss to the Braves, he was staring at a couple of the reasons he even got this opportunity: Atlanta's manager, Fredi Gonzalez, and bench coach, Carlos Tosca.

Tosca was Redmond's first professional manager, at Class A Kane County in 1993 and again at Double-A Portland in 1995. Gonzalez was his manager at Class A Advanced Brevard in 1994 and at Triple-A Charlotte in 1998. In fact, it was Gonzalez who told Redmond when he was called up to the Majors for the first time, in 1998. And he played for both during his time with the Marlins.

"One of the coolest things is, these guys have known me since I was 21 years old," Redmond said. "They've known me since I came out of Gonzaga. That's pretty neat. I definitely owe a lot to those guys as far as my development as a player.

"It is a little bit weird [to be on the other side of the field], but at the same time, it's neat. It's great. I'm not here today without those guys and the help they gave me as coaches in my development process as a player. ... Those guys broke the game down for me. Carlos was like a father to me. He was hard on me when I was a young catcher but really taught me to be accountable and responsible as a catcher. He was really tough on me. Old school. But you know what? It made me a better player and made me learn the game. I'm definitely not here without their help."